Tyndale to Publish Memoir of Mother of NFL Great LaDainian TomlinsonLoreane Tomlinson Tells What Raising an MVP Taught Her about Life, Faith, and Dreams

Carol Stream, Ill. – He is arguably the finest NFL running back of this generation, and over the last decade, possibly the league’s best player. San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson is undoubtedly one of the National Football League’s biggest stars. Yet what do people really know about “LT”? Most would say, not very much.

In a league as popular as the NFL, fans seem to know all the intimate details regarding the lives of its greatest players. Yet LaDainian Tomlinson may be its greatest oxymoron—the unknown superstar. There is one person who does know LT best: his mom, Loreane. Her memoir, LT & Me: What Raising an MVP Taught Me about Life, Faith, and Listening to Your Dreams, releases July 7, 2009, from Tyndale House Publishers.

When Tomlinson was a senior at University High School in Waco, Texas, he wrote his mom a letter making three promises: he was going to college, he was going to play professional football, and he was going to make her the proudest mother in the world. In LT & Me, Loreane Tomlinson tells the behind-the-scenes story of how all of these once seemingly impossible dreams came true. Her fascinating and poignant tales of raising LT through her days as a struggling single mom and watching him doggedly overcome obstacles in his quest for greatness will inspire readers to bring out the champion in their kids—and themselves.

Said Tomlinson of his mom while accepting the Bart Starr Award in 2008, “My mother . . . raising myself, my younger brother, and my older sister mostly on her own, she was the type of woman who took others into our home. It didn’t matter how much money we had—we didn’t have much, but we had a home. If my sister came to her and said, ‘Mother, I have a friend and she has no place to stay,’ my mother allowed the young woman to stay with us, and the same with me and my brother. That’s the way she is. That’s where it started from: giving back and helping people who were less fortunate, who didn’t have what I had and what we had as a family. She is a special woman, and she’s always been that way.”

LT & Me provides insights into the development of a champion and warm words of inspiration for parents who want to bring their kids through tough times and help them achieve their dreams.- Loreane emphasizes how her faith in God helped her survive life’s toughest times, and she includes special “heart” messages for struggling single parents.

Loreane also offers readers a behind-the-scenes look at her son’s life. LaDainian Tomlinson, undoubtedly a future Hall of Famer, set NFL records with 31 total touchdowns and 28 rushing touchdowns in 2006. That same year, he was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player and its Man of the Year. Sports Illustrated recognized him as “The Best Player in the NFL.”

Passing along values that were instilled at an early age by his mom, Loreane, Tomlinson and his wife, LaTorsha, have teamed up to become community leaders in both San Diego and their native Texas. Together they oversee the Tomlinson Touching Lives Foundation (which includes the “School is Cool” scholarship fund). They live in the San Diego suburb of Poway.

LaDainian Tomlinson will participate in major media publicity, as well as a San Diego book signing with his mom, Loreane. Marketing efforts will include an advertising and promotion campaign targeting parents and football fans nationwide. Patti Britton and Ginger Kolbaba collaborated with the author in developing the manuscript.

Tyndale House Publishers has had great recent success with a number of football-related titles. Tony Dungy’s Quiet Strength: The Practices, Principles, and Priorities of a Winning Life (July 2007) reached No. 1 on the New York Times Best Sellers List, and with more than 1,000,000 copies in print, is one of the best-selling sports-related titles in history. Dungy’s most current book (Jan. 2009), Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance, reached No. 2 on the Times’ “Advice, How-To & Misc.” list. Deanna Favre’s Don’t Bet Against Me! (Sept. 2007) spent 10 consecutive weeks on either the New York Times hardcover nonfiction primary list (top 15) or the expanded list (top 35). Favre is the wife of NFL great Brett Favre. The Winners Manual: For the Game of Life (July 2008), written by Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel, reached No. 2 on the Times’ “Advice” list.

In July 2009, Tyndale will release Game Plan for Life by NFL Hall of Fame coach and NASCAR team owner Joe Gibbs.

Tyndale House Publishers was founded in 1962 by Dr. Kenneth N. Taylor as a means of publishing The Living Bible. It is now one of the premier publishing houses in the industry. Tyndale products include numerous New York Times best sellers, including the popular Left Behind series. Tyndale also publishes the New Living Translation of the Bible and many other resources for church and family. Tyndale House Publishers is located in Carol Stream, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago.